Details
I’m trying to think of a magazine idea to pitch as part of an assignment for Columbia. I’m realizing just how clever the concept of Lotus was, just what a great niche it had, just how much potential it had, and (after speaking to SDG, the publisher, today) just how doomed it is.

One of my ideas is a boy version of Bust magazine, sort of like Dirt was back in ‘92 or even a little bit reminiscent of Details circa ‘96. Something along the lines of “The Magazine for Men Fighting the Dominant Paradigm.” A men’s mag for smart funky urban blokes fighting the stereotypes of what it means to be a man, whether that’s a straight white man, or gay black man. But you’ll note that Dirt died quickly and Details has been transformed to keep up by tripe like Maxim, so perhaps I’ll go with my “Utne Jr.” idea or Exploring Spirituality for Teens concept (ie “New Age Jr.”). I’m not good at the coming up with ideas part, I’m good at the working with existing ideas part. That’s how my brain works. Always has. I find creative systems to work within existing infrastructures, but I’m not good at creating the infrastructure myself.

I’m also trying to figure out some other details like how am I getting from JFK to Columbia at 9pm next Sunday, whether my PC will fit in my carry-on bag, and if should I use my WaMu banking account or open up an account at Chase Manhattan for the summer. Answer to last question: The ATM fees of WaMu are NOTHING compared to opening an account with Chase. Does no-one on the East Coast understand the concept of “Free Checking”? Are we that spoiled over here on the left coast? WaMu never cares how many transactions I do in a month, but Chase wanted to charge me 50 cents for every transaction over TEN a month! Weird shit. But these are important details.

Details details details.